1911 Philadelphia Athletics

1911 Philadelphia Athletics / Franchise: Oakland Athletics / BR Team Page

Record: 101-50-1, Finished 1st in American League (1911 AL)

Clinched Pennant: September 26, 1911, vs. Detroit Tigers

World Series Champs

Managed by Connie Mack

Ballpark: Shibe Park

History, Comments, Contributions

The 1911 Philadelphia Athletics successfully defended their 1910 pennant, but it wasn't easy. They got off to a mediocre start and on May 19th, they were two games below .500 at 13-15 while the Detroit Tigers had started off like gangbusters, going 27-5 over the same stretch. Thus, the Athletics were in fifth place, 12 games back of first. Up to that time, the largest deficit any team had ever overcome in major league history was 9 games, by two different teams, but the A's would set a new mark. They went on a 34-7 tear and by July 4th, they were in first place, a half game ahead of Detroit. The Tigers suddenly woke up and went on a tear of their own at that point, winning 13 of 14, to build another big lead, this one of 5 1/2 games on July 18th. But the Tigers played below .500 the rest of the way, while the Athletics continued to win, and they eventually secured the pennant in late September, finishing with 101 wins, one less than their record-setting total of the previous year.

The A's scored the most runs in the American League and allowed the fewest, always a good combination. In a year when offensive numbers were much better than they had been since the start of the century, they batted .296 as a team, with five regulars at .310 or better: Eddie Collins, Frank Baker, Danny Murphy, Stuffy McInnis and Bris Lord. On September 22nd, thanks to a couple of solid-hitting back-ups and P Jack Coombs, they fielded a line-up in which everyone but SS Jack Barry was hitting .300 or better! On the mound, Eddie Plank and Albert Bender combined to go 40-13, with an ERA of 2.87. Their busiest moundsman in terms of innings pitched was Coombs, but he went from being the league's best pitcher in 1910 to a middling one, finishing at 28-12 with a 4.44 ERA in 336 2/3 innings. He went from 74 runs allowed to 166 in fewer innings, but had tremendous run support to mask some of his decline.

Standings

American League	W	L	Pct.	GB
Philadelphia Athletics	101	50	.669	--
Detroit Tigers	89	65	.578	13½
Cleveland Naps	80	73	.523	22
Boston Red Sox	78	75	.510	24
Chicago White Sox	77	74	.510	24
New York Highlanders	76	76	.500	25½
Washington Senators	64	90	.416	38½
St. Louis Browns	45	107	.296	56½

Further Reading

• Associated Press: "PENNANT FOR ATHLETICS.; Philadelphia Clinches 1911 Honors by Defeating Detroit Nine Yesterday.", New York Times, September 27, 1911
• Lew Freedman: Connie Mack's First Dynasty: The Philadelphia Athletics, 1910–1914, McFarland, Jefferson, NC, 2017. ISBN 978-0-7864-9627-3

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